Again, this principle simply means that certain objects and events depicted in Scripture are the physical manifestations of spiritual truths in the heavens.

And Yeshua was the perfect example: “He who has seen me has seen the Father (in heaven).”

In Genesis chapter 8, which we are studying now, we also encounter a few interesting examples of this “As-in-Heaven-So-on-Earth” principle in action.

God’s Spirit manifesting as wind:

In verse one, it says that God sent a wind over the earth to push back the waters. Now the Hebrew word for wind here is “Ruach” and it actually means “spirit”. Maybe you are familiar with the term the “Ruach Ha-Kodesh”, which means the Holy Spirit. So here is another demonstration of the “As-in-heaven-so-on-earth” principle.

God’s spirit is manifesting Himself physically as wind.

The Raven and the Dove:

After 40 days pass, Noah opens the door of the ark and sends out a raven. The raven is a scavenger that feeds off the flesh of the dead However, the raven does not return. So Noah lets seven days pass and then sends out a dove that soon returns. Noah lets another seven days pass and sends out the dove a second time. It returns again but this time with an olive tree leaf in its beak. Noah sends out the dove a third time and this time the dove does not return. The time to leave the ark and begin a new life on earth had arrived.

There is some interesting symbolism expressed through the raven and the dove.

The raven is an unclean bird and is considered to be a symbol of evil.

In contrast, the dove is a clean bird and in Scripture is a symbol of the Holy Spirit.

Notice the characteristics portrayed of the raven. The Scripture says that the raven went forth “to and fro” and never returned. Who else in Scripture is described as roaming the earth to and fro? None other than Satan himself. Second, the raven is a bird that feeds on the flesh of the dead. In similar manner, the unbeliever who knows not God nor the things of the Lord goes through life aimlessly, deriving futile pleasures from things that have no life in them.

Now, whereas the raven was only sent out once, the dove was sent out three times. Although, I don’t quite agree with their interpretation, Christians point out that that the dove being sent out three times is a reflection of the triune nature of God. That point aside, there is no doubt however that the number 3 holds a special Godly significance in the Scriptures. For example, Noah had three sons, Yeshua Himself was raised on the third day, and the ark of the covenant contained 3 sacred objects and there are many other examples.

In comparing the raven with the dove, it should be noted that while the raven was able to derive satisfaction from the dead fleshly things of the world, the dove wasn’t able to and thus returned. When the dove came back a second time, it had an olive tree leaf in it’s beak.

Christianity and Judaism both agree that the olive tree symbolizes peace.

Let us consider some interesting facts about the olive tree.

First, olives themselves have been known throughout the ages for their nutritional and healing value.

In the Bible, olive oil has played a significant role in anointing kings and high-priests and was used to light the menorah in the Holy Temple.

The national emblem of the State of Israel is olive leaves cradled around a menorah.

The symbol for the Israel Defense Forces is a sword wrapped by an olive branch. The meaning being-“we seek peace but we are prepared to defend against our enemies”.

Comments

Malachi 3:14 + Malachi 4:2-6 + Matthew 3:1-8
Through Noah and the two birds, the Raven and the Dove God makes a promise; He will send two people one will be His messenger, and the other His Son. When it comes to the time between Malachi and Matthew God simulates the time when Noah and His family enter the ark by stopping interacting with His people for a season; to many it is as if God no longer existed, to those fighting the fight of faith the presence of God is very real. The whole world is covered in violence and dominated by constant warfare.

The Jews were slowly losing their OT Jewish identity because of a new language and new social ideals and customs. The Jews of the Old Testament times and the Jews of the New Testament times were very different. Only those who were really committed to YHWH remained faithful. Many of the Jews in theses New Testament times had become Hellenised and had taken to wearing capes and wide brimmed hats after the style of the Hellenistic Greeks; also many were involved in sports and gambling, they were quite the dandies! This was Israel at the time of John-the-Baptist’s appearance Divorce is rampant, Temple Sacrifices have become corrupt, and the worst animals are offered to God. Tithing is almost non-existent, Sorcery of all kinds is practiced by laity and priests alike, adultery is rife throughout the land, financial corruption by the High Priest is evident, and all manner of social injustices like oppression of the orphans, foreigners, and the poor is both blatant and rampant in all Israel. God is being openly mocked, many of the people are saying quite publicly it is a waste of time to serve YHWH; what has God ever done for me? This kind of attitude is dominating all Israel; it is as if all Israel were just dead bodies. Israel was dead in their sin, in fact, Israel is in no fit state to receive their Mashiach, and something had to be done.

Remember Israel are dead in their sin, the Jewish scriptures say ‘The word sent out the Raven’, it like John-the-Baptist was sent by God to minister to those dead in their sin; so the Raven goes to and fro between the dead bodies. The Raven continues to return to the ark; the Hebrew word used here for return is shuwb pronounced shoob. It means to return, to repent, to restore, to come back or to go back and it is never used in any English translation; the Raven continues to go back to the ark until it suddenly disappears off the scene. Just as eventually John-the-Baptist suddenly disappears off the scene.

Mark 1:1-10
In Genesis 2:7 God both makes and creates Adam, and then breaths the breath of life into his nose and Adam lives. In Genesis 2:21-22 the Lord causes a deep sleep to fall on Adam, the Hebrew word for deep sleep means to be Anesthetised and all though we do not realise it then; it becomes symbolic of the time Noah is in the ark. But although God takes Eve out of Adam He never breaths the breath of life into Eve even though she becomes a living being. Adam becomes symbolic of the Jew and Eve becomes symbolic of the Bride of Christ that comes out of Judaism.

1 Peter 3:18-20
When Noah sends out the Dove for the first time the Hebrew scriptures do like they do for the Raven, they also say it is the ‘Word’ that sends out the Dove; the Raven is still going to and fro, which indicates that Jesus Christ the Son of God appears on the scene at the same time as John-the-Baptist. Genesis 2:9 says the Dove could find no rest and Noah reaches out his hand and takes the Dove into Ark. That first outing of the Dove is indicative of Jesus’ earthly ministry, and as the Dove returns to the Ark so Christ is crucified. The fact that Noah takes the Dove on his arm identifies God’s protection of Christ’s body not allowing it too see corruption. Noah waits seven days; seven is God’s Spiritual Perfection that seven days is indicative of the three days and three nights Jesus Christ is the grave; Jesus is made alive in His Spirit and visits those spirits held in bondage. Just as a side note the three days and three nights (3+3) =6: then x 7 (spiritual perfection) = 6×7 =42: Forty-two again it means after a period of probation, comes redemption, renewal, and being born again becoming a new creation; your dominion has been enlarged. While all this is according to God’s Perfect Divine order, when 6×7 is a factor of 42, it involves a connection to the Anti-Christ.

John 20:19-22 + Romans 11: 16-24
Genesis 8:11-12 the Hebrew scriptures tell us the ‘Word’ sent out the Dove again; it comes back in the evening with the leaf of an olive tree in its beak. Evening signifies the end of a season; the olive leaf is full of prophetic significance.

According to the Biblical story, after the great flood, Noah sends out a dove to see if the waters have subsided. The dove returns with a fresh olive leaf in her beak and since then the dove has became a symbol of peace. It is generally accepted that the olive branch is not food for the dove but is a symbol of freedom, because he who the Son sets free is free indeed. The Dove, which is seen by the world as a symbol of peace, is in fact that very peace itself; the Son whom the Dove represents is a symbol of freedom. The Olive branch is the Shalom of the Mashiach, and is used even to this day as peace offering to settle differences. The Hebrew word for Dove is linked to wine and that is a symbol of the Holy Spirit, thus in the same way the Dove also represents the third Person of the Godhead; this is emphasised when Jesus was baptized and the Holy Spirit descended in bodily shape as a dove upon him. The primary meaning of the Olive Branch is Israel; the wild olive represents the Gentiles. The olive branch also represents the Shalom of the Mashiach. Olive oil used to anoint kings and priests was taken from the olive tree; when the dove returned with an olive leaf and gave it to Noah it was symbolic of the time Jesus was explaining to His disciples that He would be returning to the Father. Then as the Dove / Mashiach returns to the Father in the ascension; the disciples filled with the Shalom of Christ and in obedience to Jesus could continue God’s colonisation programme. That would naturally include gentiles becoming one with Israel

Rich, the more of your stuff I read, the more I like it. You use silple statements from the texts to let them alone illustrate what you are trying to make clear. You do not pretend to have special insight, knowledge or understanding, that isn’t available to anyone willing to look, and do not seek to make yourself out as more important than anyone else seeking a better understanding of the word.

You remain in my prayers. It must be difficult to find a Torah based fellowship where you are.

Thank you for your warm comment Ger. It was very encouraging. Yes, I’m just blogging through the Torah one verse at a time and trying to be as objective and humble as possible. If you read my posts from the very beginning to today, you can see how I’ve adapted my thinking as I received kind insights and corrections from others.

Yes, I have to agree with the previous comment: your insight is awesome, and I love it! Thank you so much for doing this. And thanks be to God for so guiding you.

One thought that I’d like to add on this particular post, though. You define the raven as an unbeliever, who “feeds on fleshly dead things”. Although I do not disagree with this interpretation, I feel it is only partially true. Consider digging a little deeper:

After the true doctrine of Christianity was handed over to the Gentiles, the teachings of the Messiah have suffered an onslaught of different cultures, interpretations, versions and perversions. In our present day, we must not overlook the reality — and predominance — of dead faith (“dead” being the key word here). “Having the appearance of godliness, but denying it’s power”: no fear of God that the people first felt on Mt. Sinai, and thus no deep appreciation for the greatness of his son’s sacrifice (it seems to exist more as a theory, almost as if “owed” to us). And consequently this spirit of dead faith goes to and fro all over the earth (powered by Satan, the spirit and the promoter of spiritual death, no doubt), feeding on dead things: unchecked fleshly lusts, love of the world that comes before the love if God, freedom from the Law that is taken to the point of it’s complete abandonment (i.e. “lasciviousness”), etc, etc, etc.

When people who do not profess themselves to be Christians live like this, it is normal and natural (as in, consistent with the fallen human nature). But when there is no difference between the life (and the feelings) of these “normal” (aka “worldly”) people, and someone who believes he/she is a Christian, we’ve got a great deception going, because dead faith leads to death, contrary to popular belief.

It is easy to write off God’s teaching contained in the image of the raven in this verse as something pertaining to non-believers. However, I think it is a lot more vital warning against being deceived by the spirit who roams widely around the whole earth, going to and fro, feeding on dead faith and dead fleshly things that our nature has an inclination to (after the fall) – but never returns the the ark (or the right sheepfold as described later)